Injured Western Bulldogs captain Marcus Bontempelli won’t be rushed back with a Gather Round return the earliest possible mark

Injured Western Bulldogs captain Marcus Bontempelli is hopeful he’ll be back for his team’s round 5 clash with reigning premiers Brisbane, conceding it’s going to take “a little bit of time” to get over his calf issue. Bontempelli is unable to train fully due to what the club labelled a “complex calf injury” that reared its head during the Community Series clash with Hawthorn. He was forced from the ground and the diagnosis painted a picture of a potentially tricky recovery, and while Bontempelli said it was “coming along well”, there was no chance of speeding it up. “Obviously, not ideal any way that you look at it, missing the jump this year on the start of the season,” he said on Tuesday. “So far it’s progressed nicely. I’ll start to reload and get back on legs pretty quickly, which is nice. “It’s obviously going to take a little bit of time, which is the frustrating thing, but the good thing is I feel great and really confident with our team that I’ve spent a long time with from a medical perspective. “The important part here is to get it right so there’s no issues down the track.” The Bulldogs have a lengthy injury list ahead of their season-opening clash with North Melbourne on Saturday and will also be without star forward Jamarra Ugle-Hagan, who won’t play until he regains the trust of teammates as he battles personal issues. Returns for injured players including Liam Jones and Adam Treloar could come before Bontempelli gets back, with the captain unwilling to lock in a date given the nature of the injury. “Hopefully, it’s around five to six weeks (from the injury), we’re looking in that vicinity,” he told SEN. “Where that takes us to is probably around the Brisbane game in Gather Round, so in and around there is where we’re hoping. “As you know, these things can hopefully speed up if things are progressing nicely. This probably doesn’t look exactly like that scenario, so I wouldn’t expect us getting back out there before that period.”